Thursday, September 1, 2011

Secular Thursday Post Time

"It seems as if the state is at war with the Catholic community, Springfield Bishop Thomas John Paprocki says.

“In many ways, it does certainly feel like our principles and our ways of acting within our religious beliefs are under attack,” Paprocki said in an interview.

The decision by the Department of Children and Family Services to sever its foster care and adoption services contracts with Catholic Charities is just one example, Paprocki said. He also cited an order by ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich requiring pharmacies and pharmacists to dispense emergency contraception. The order was struck down by a Sangamon County judge in April.

“We have concerns down the line about requirements mandating contraception in insurance plans and ultimately even requiring Catholic hospitals to perform abortion,” Paprocki said.

Following Circuit Judge John Schmidt’s ruling that Catholic Charities does not have a legal right to extension of its state contracts to oversee foster and adoptive children, Peoria Bishop Daniel Jenky said “important elements of the political establishment in the state of Illinois are now basically at war with the Catholic community.”

Asked last week if he agreed, Paprocki said, “It feels like it.

“We’re simply trying to continue to do the social services we’ve done for decades,” he said. “Suddenly, they are telling us we can’t do that anymore. We are concerned that this is not just an isolated case. We see a growing secularism in our society.”

I am THRILLED and HAPPY to see secularism creeping into Illinois decisions. The Great Land of Lincoln!

Contraception, Pro-choice decisions, removing foster care from it's long-time near-monopoly relationship with Catholic Charities Bishop PopRocks's fear of the frightening slippery slope ahead gives me hope.
But it also means he will be on his pulpit bad-mouthing the "secular" decisions of the state.

I can guess as to why Illinois Child Welfare Services has severed it's contract with Catholic Charities as of August 19th of this year, but that is HUGE. Many Catholic social service agencies have been kept afloat financially by these contracts. I wonder what will happen to them now? Who has those foster care contracts? DCFS?

Make no mistake, those foster care contracts were terminated with the Catholic agency for one reason: they refuse to allow openly gay couples to provide foster care to children in need and THAT violates the Illinois state anti-discrimination laws.

Due to the Catholic Church's unwillingness to budge on this issue, over two thousand children will now have to be moved to new foster arrangements. Two thousand children!

I salute the state of Illinois for doing what is right in this case and for sticking to the ethics of the situation.

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About Karen

I'm an atheist parent!

I am a Midwestern American, very open atheist, secular humanist, science lover, cohost of The Secular Parents on the SecularTv channel on Youtube, and I'm mum to two amazing human beings (ages 20 and 17).

We homeschooled for over twelve years. Now I'm entering into my "empty nest" years...

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